The Balyans were a family of Armenian-Ottoman architects who, over three generations, were responsible for a great number of varied building projects in 19th century Istanbul. Their building works for the Armenian Community will form the focus of this paper, in particular the churches that they rebuilt in stone. Until the 19th century, new churches were not allowed to be built for the Christian communities under Ottoman rule; the pre-existing ones could simply be renovated. The process of renovating a church required the submission of a request or petition and would be followed by a long process of checks presided over by the Kadi and the Chief Imperial Architect. The document authorizing the renovation would clearly state that the ‘original style’ of the church should be followed and that its dimensions should not exceed the present ones, recorded by the apprentices of the chief architect. If a church was renovated without permission, it would be pulled down. In the early 19th century, during the reign of Sultan Mahmud II and then continuing under Abdulmecid, churches were rebuilt in large numbers in stone, many of which were financed and/or carried out by the Balyan family. The churches were, in the main, originally wooden and so their being rebuilt in stone provides an obvious opportunity to exclaim the growing acceptance of minorities by the state and their rights being increased. However the re-building of these churches does not just show the changing position of the Armenian community with regards to the Ottoman State- and the role of the schism between the Armenian Catholics and Protestants in the time of Mahmud II as studied by Kemal Beydilli, or the rise in the popularity of Armenian officials in response to the Greek Rebellion as Ilber Ortayli has stated. The study of specific case studies of the rebuilding and building of churches through their archival documentation and through the study of the features of their architecture and decoration can shed light on the deeper reality of the Armenian Community in the 19th Century and the role of the Balyan family within that. Examples of the architecture and decoration diverging from the ‘original style’ that the official document of permission stipulated show the increased self-expression of the community but also shed light on the greater professional operations of the Balyan family at this time.

The citadel of Cairo is one of the largest and most important citadels in Islamic military architecture. In spite of the numerous studies written about this citadel, the issue of the exact boundaries of the southern section of the citadel during the Ayyubid period has not been satisfactorily resolved. This paper will propose a reconstruction of the boundaries of the southern section of the citadel of Cairo at the time of its initial construction by Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi. Several scholars like Casanova, Creswell, Rabbat and others have suggested plausible reconstructions based on excellent analysis of both archeological and textual evidence. Based on textual and archeological evidence, this paper will argue that the southern walls of the citadel covered roughly the same outline as we know it today, covering the full boundaries of the rock on which the citadel was constructed. This is in direct contradiction to the arguments given by the scholars mentioned above, since all their discussions negated this possibility. The scholars' reconstructions were based partly on the analysis of the numbers given in a description by Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi's secretary, `Imad al-Din al-Isfahani, regarding the length of the walls constructed to encircle Cairo and Fustat including the Citadel in between. As part of the argument, this paper will show that the wording of `Imad al-Din al-Isfahani's text was either incomplete or inaccurate. Careful analysis of that text will lead us to only one conclusion: that there was a "missing" segment of the walls of the citadel of unknown length, making its perimeter larger that what the scholars have suggested. As a second part of the argument, this paper will document overlooked segments of walls and retaining walls that exist to date. We will provide enough proof to confirm the Ayyubid dating of those segments, strongly suggesting that those walls were part of the original Ayyubid boundaries of the citadel, thus forming the "missing" boundary mentioned above.

This paper looks at the power of colonial urban planning to reframe religious space. Looking at town planning initiatives and preservation policies in British Palestine during the 1920s, it traces how a new reading of religious space was imposed on Jerusalem through colonial urban "reform". Through the use of official papers of the Palestine Town Planning Commission and the British-run Pro-Jerusalem Society, I identify the manner in which the present division between the Old City and new city of Jerusalem was solidified and made lasting by colonial policy. Arguing that this division was designed to turn the Old City into a purely religious space, both physically and mentally distinct from the political and economic realm of the secular city beyond its walls, I suggest that British planning must be seen as one of the ways in which a modern Western reading of religion as private, apolitical, and "traditional" was introduced to Palestine. Although I find evidence that this new discourse was picked up by local actors, I conclude that it was deployed according to their own agendas and in ways that challenged the hegemony of the colonial project.

As stone has historically been plentiful throughout Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and surrounding countries, buildings were traditionally constructed of a very hard, crystallized stone cut from mountain quarries such as mizzi. A small opening, rosalin (or rosana), was typically fashioned in the center of domed roofs. The rosalyn served as a source of natural light, a vent for the interior stoves in the winter and an exit for the heat from the building or house during the warm months. These openings are covered with lids to contain room heat or shut out bad weather when so desired. Upon closer examination, several other popular uses for the rosalin may be found in addition to the primary physical functionalities. This paper examines the different functions served by the rosalin ranging from 1) physical comfort within the human habitat to 2) the romantic, pastoral aspect depicted in poetry, folklore and song to 3) the practical everyday “windows of opportunity” that such rosalyns present to selected community youth. For instance, the villagers wrote songs surrounding the rosalin; often blaming their love-sick hearts on the rosalin. Young men were known to spy into Arab homes through open rosalins in an effort to catch a glimpse of the girl of their dreams. Lyrics were sung such as: Oh, rosalin, oh rosalin, what trouble have you brought me. The love of the world originates from the rosalin. Oh, God, please take good care of the rosalin (loosely translated from Arabic). A villager born in 1926 Palestine, admitted to spying on a pre-wedding henna party through one of these rosalins with some of his adolescent male friends during his youth. One of the friends proved to be so zealous as to fall through the opening into the room below. One can imagine the trouble that this young lad found himself in. The other men had run from the scene, so didn’t witness the aftermath. This paper is based on research that I have conducted in the field and on important social, political and literary publications. I have inspected and photographed such rosalins located in Jordan and the West Bank. Though my research is currently underway, example reference materials include: Aamiry 1978; Farsoun 1979; Hayes 1983; Hourani 1991; Kana’neh 1994; Muhawi & Kana’neh 1989; Nasir 1976; Fleming 1972; plus additional publications by the local Jordanian architectural community.

The purpose of this paper is to explore and interpret qualities and metaphors of space in the architecture of the Persian desert cities. The emptiness, the silence, the heat, the soil, the absence of water, the enigmatic play of light and shadows?the architecture?sanctify the desert city as one gets immersed in it, allowing for spiritual and poetic experience. The paper discusses qualities of time and space imbued in the architecture of the eighteenth-century city of Kashan, the architecture that is perceived as a unified entity rather than specific shapes of particular buildings. Entering, exploring and departing the city allow for a unique way of participation in the architectural space. Discovering and experiencing the city can only happen on foot through the chiseled network of narrow alleys?the inside and outside passageways?which are the characteristic features of this desert architecture, embodying multitude of metaphorical attributes. The architecture is not defined by imposed forms, but by the significance of silence and emptiness that create moments for the observer to perceive the space through contemplation and meditation. The space stimulates observer’s imagination and interpretation; it challenges senses, demanding alert presence. The space of architecture, the maze of passages, their transient character and timelessness narrate a non-linear story, creating continuity in the space constantly offering possibilities for a renewed experience in the space. The analysis of the qualities of space in the desert city of Kashan, leads to elucidation of the characteristic bonds between the architectural space and the observer, leading to redefining the role of the observer in the architectural space. The character and narrative of the space in the Persian desert cities have the potential to broaden our understanding and perception of time and space within the architectural discourse. The unmatched way of capturing silence and emptiness, the successive thresholds and the transient conditions of the space in the architecture of the desert cities, intensify the relationship between the observer and architectural space. The investigation of these qualities provides an insight to the space of architecture within the contemporary context.